Driver distraction is a specific type of inattention that occurs when drivers divert their attention away from the driving task to focus on another activity. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has broadly categorized driver distractions into three types: (1) visual distractions which are tasks that require the driver to look away from the roadway to visually obtain information; (2) manual distractions which are tasks that require the driver to take one or both hands off the steering wheel to manipulate a control, device or other non-driving-related item; and (3) cognitive distractions which are tasks that require the driver to avert their mental attention away from the driving task. Notably, manual text entry into a wireless communications device for the purpose of text-based messaging simultaneously involves all three distraction types and is thus a particularly dangerous activity.
While state laws and consumer information campaigns have sought to reduce driver distractions caused by texting, young people that have grown up with this technology seem compelled to read and obliged to immediately reply to text messages regardless of their surroundings. Proposals have been made to limit the functionality of wireless communications devices used by drivers by locking out certain features that inherently interfere with a driver's ability to safely control a vehicle, such as the manual text entry functionality. While this approach may reduce certain visual-manual interaction with a driver's wireless communications device, it fails to address the cognitive distraction caused by the driver's urge to check and immediately reply to incoming messages. Accordingly, a need has arisen for a wireless communications device having a driver mode that alleviates a driver's urge to check and immediately reply to incoming messages.